Ever since the year of 2015, I have developed a crazy addiction that I, to this day, cannot seem to kick. I’m am up for hours, I use it when I wake up, during the day, before I go to bed and even sometimes in class. This addiction that I cannot seem to shake is Pinterest.
Pinterest is a website and mobile app designed for the user to take inspiration or ideas of fashion, interior design, photography, beauty, and anything else you can think of through the use of images called “pins”. With numerous images displayed after you sign in to your account, you categorize your images into “pinboards” that you can later pull back up for reference to any project you are in the process of or just for simple fun.
It sounds so innocent, right?
That’s what I thought when my AP photography teacher made us make one for a project. At the time, putting pictures on boards seemed almost pointless and honestly a waste of time. But little did my junior year-self know that I was already addicted before I even knew it. After my project was over I still was using the website here and there. Over time Pinterest quickly went from a waste of time to my favorite past time.
Today I, as a college freshman, I use Pinterest to influence my style for class, formal events, and to keep up with the latest and greatest in fashion. But that is not all, I use it for ideas regarding room décor, what I want my future house to look like, cute animals, recipes, fitness, gifts for friends and family, gifts for myself, and the list goes on and on.
Having an addiction to Pinterest has positively and negatively affected my life. Since I am heavily into fashion, looking at different kinds of fashion around the world influences my fashion as well.
When making pinboards for my lifestyle with my fitness board or feminist board, I see them as online motivational boards. I take inspiration from different images and put them on one board where I can refer to and grow from. But feeding this Pinterest addiction could be costly.
My love and addiction for Pinterest seemed to grow more every single day. I was trying to structure and compare my life, body, and self-image to those on Pinterest, and that is not a healthy mindset. Looking at the things I don’t have only made me unappreciative to the things I do possess and overall kind of unhappy in the end.
Going forward, I plan on moderating my use of Pinterest. I need to rid this negative mindset of comparing my life to what I see on Pinterest and online overall. Instead, I need to appreciate what I do have in my life and using "pins" or "boards" to enhance these things instead of comparing one another.